Repairs underway at Raider Stadium

By Shawn Stinson Sports editor sstinson@civitasmedia.com

May 14, 2014

ROCKINGHAM — After 42 years, it isn’t surprising Raider Stadium is getting a little work done.

McDonald Contractors, based in Rockingham, has been removing and re-pouring the concrete steps around the stadium this spring. In addition to the work on the steps, the company also removed several rows of bleacher seats to re-pour concrete in those areas as well.

Terry Miller, Maintenance Director for Richmond County Schools, said the project needed to be done because it was “a hazard for people.”

“There was no re-bar or very little re-bar,” Miller said. “It was starting to shift.”

Miller added there was a small window of time for McDonald Contractors to get the work done on the stadium between the end of Richmond’s girls soccer season and the school’s graduation.

“We started work about 2 1/2 weeks ago,” John McDonald said. “We should be done by the end of next week.”

McDonald said his crew will rip out and replace 126 steps around the stadium during the project. He added when he was bidding on the job, he was afraid there would be additional damage under the steps, but there wasn’t.

“The concrete was starting to decay,” McDonald said. “We did a little over half the steps in 2009. After this everything should be fine unless there starts to be more signs of decay.”

Miller said three sets of steps on the home side and three on the visitor sides were replaced. He estimated the cost of the repairs between $30,000 to $40,000.